A DHS agenda item says the department wants to eliminate employment authorization for some spouses of H-1B visa holders.
“DHS is proposing to remove from its regulations certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B nonimmigrant workers as a class of aliens eligible to request employment authorization under the (c)(26) category. This proposal would reverse the changes made in the 2015 final rule, ‘Employment Authorization for Certain H-4 Dependent Spouses,’ and restore DHS’s long-standing policy of not extending eligibility to request employment authorization to H-4 dependent spouses,” the DHS statement read. H-4 visa holders are spouses of H-1Bs in the US. They are authorized to work in the US, and they get an Employment Authorization Document based on a 2015 rule. The proposal plans to remove some H-4 visa holders from the category. As this is only a proposal and will take months and years to become approved, H-1B spouses or H-4 visa holders are not banned from jobs in the US. Earlier reporting noted: DHS has revived a regulatory proposal that would remove certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B workers from the categories eligible for employment authorization. Earlier reporting noted: The proposal would effectively roll back a rule introduced in 2015 that allowed qualifying H-4 spouses to apply for an Employment Authorization Document (EAD). The proposal is listed in the federal regulatory agenda as “Removing H-4 Dependent Spouses From the Classes of Noncitizens Eligible for Employment Authorization. Earlier reporting noted: The development does not mean H-4 work permits have been cancelled.
That takes many months at minimum, and rules like this are usually challenged in court,” Barik said. Priority date, I140 notice, passport, status paperwork,” Barik said. It’s not known who will be affected if the proposal becomes a rule, but experts believe that those who have been living in the US for a long time, waiting for Green Card may be targeted by the new rule. “Before anything changes, DHS must publish a proposed rule, collect public comments, respond to them, publish a final rule, and set an effective date. “Keep your documents in one place. The proposal remains at an early stage and would need to go through the federal rulemaking process before any change could take effect.
Immigration expert Swatilina Barik said there is no need to panic today, based on the agenda entry, as it is only a statement of intent and not a rule.
The Department of Homeland Security has come up with a proposal to remove certain H-4 dependent spouses of H-1B visa holders from employment authorization. But it created a major confusion among H-1B visa holders while America First activists celebrated and claimed that if this gets published Monday, over 600,000 jobs will open up in next 2-4 weeks. Not much is known about the proposal and the proposal is listed as a long-term action and not to be published immediately.